DavePreciado.com
Feb 20
by Dave in Film Maker, Work 0 comments tags: animation, maya, mayahikretargeting, mocap, mocaptutorial, motioncapture, motionediting, performancecapture, previsualization, previz, VFX, vfxtutorial, videogameproduction, virtualproduction

ALITA BATTLE ANGEL Performance Capture + Behind The Scenes Preview

Have a look at some of the on-set capture we use at Weta Digital. We did a LOT of Motion Editing and performance changes – it’s NEVER a 1:1 situation and there is a lot of artistry and technical ability required to successfully pull off such an amazing Mocap Film. Check it out! #mocap #mocaptutorial #mayahikretargeting #maya #motioncapture #performancecapture #motionediting #animation #vfx #vfxtutorial #videogameproduction #virtualproduction #previz #previsualization
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Feb 19
by Dave in CG, Work 0 comments tags: animation, maya, mayahikretargeting, mocap, mocaptutorial, motioncapture, motionediting, performancecapture, previsualization, previz, VFX, vfxtutorial, videogameproduction, virtualproduction

New Mocap Tutorial! Maya HIK Retargeting

Hey guys, I’ve been asked over the years how to work with Mocap data in Maya and if I could share some of my workflows. I’ve done the 1st of a few I have in mind to go over some basic workflows starting with Maya’s native HIK system, and how to retarget motion capture data to a custom pre-existing animation rig. I cover basic concepts, what retargeting is fundamentally doing, retargeting from fbx mocap skeleton to custom rig, 1st of 3 methods I use and is a good segway into more complex plugins, briefly cover fbx workflow, and some basic Motion Editing concepts. I hope this helps – enjoy! Maya HIK Retargeting Tutorial #mocap #mocaptutorial #mayahikretargeting #maya #motioncapture #performancecapture #motionediting #animation #vfx #vfxtutorial #videogameproduction #virtualproduction #previz #previsualization
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Apr 30
by Dave in Uncategorized 0 comments tags: animation, art institute, art school, Battle of the Five Armies, cg, film, Giant, maya, motion capture, Motionbuilder, movie, new zealand, Nuance, Peter Jackson, technical animation, The Hobbit, VFX, virtual production

An old interview from my 1st Art School I attended…19 years ago…

Dave Preciado Q&A: “Hobbit” Motion Editor By: Rachel Handel Filed under: Animation & Effects December 16, 2014 Share This: The Art institutes: What work did you do on The Hobbit Films? What are the steps involved? Dave: I worked on the last two Hobbit films – “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” (THB2) and “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (THB3). “For THB2, I was on the for the entire post duration of the film, roughly 6 months, and the same on THB3. I’ve worked as a motion editor—basically an animator/technical animator who works with performance capture data, using Giant Studio’s motion editing software called Nuance instead of Maya—on both films. On [THB2] I did get to work on stage with the director, Peter Jackson, during the final month of shooting virtual cameras. Motion edit and animation are essentially the same thing when it comes to working with mocap (motion capture) data, so we work most closely with the animation department. Both animation and motion edit fall under the “Motion” department at Weta Digital. As a motion editor, I do a variety of jobs on the film. I clean up motion capture data, solve the performers data onto […]
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Nov 13
by Dave in CG 0 comments tags: animation, cg, Compositing, Massey, maya, mocap, motion builder, motion capture, music, music video, new zealand, nuke, NZ, Pacific Heights, VFX, virtual production

Pacific Heights – Airborne

Here it is!  I’ve been working on this in my spare time since the beginning of May 2015.  Working on a feature film while doing a music video…oy!  We finished a week ago and it premiered today, Friday November 13th! I’ll post a more thorough update soon – stay tuned!  
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May 17
by Dave in CG 0 comments tags: 3d, 3Delight, cg, HDR, HDR shop, IBL, maya, panoramic, VFX

New light probe **Updated**

Here’s my new light probe for on set light ref.  I ordered a 10″ gazing globe from Amazon.  With shipping, the cost was about $80NZD.  I went down to a place in town called Metalworx to have the ball drilled and threaded.  Everything was custom milled.  I had them make a removable dowel as well.  A custom spud handle locks onto the dowel with a screw and can easily be removed and clamped onto a c-stand or a tripod or inserted into a long piece of pipe.  This custom milling cost around $230NZD but is well worth it.   This seemed to be the most robust way to shoot light probes on set.  You can have someone stand behind the ball and shoot your brackets, rotate 90 degrees and bracket again.  If you have more time, then obviously you can set up a c-stand and shoot your 10-12 exposures for a complete and ideal HDR light probe.   Optically, the 10″ ball isn’t the greatest.  There are some bumps on the surface and the weld between the 2 hemispheres is visible, but through the camera is on the edge of the ball.  I snapped a few photos of it and […]
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Feb 10
by Dave in Get Out 0 comments tags: 3d, animation, cg, character, dog, maya, mudbox, sculpt, turntable

Mugs model, UVsets, & sculpt

Once I had Mugs’ design finalized, he was ready to model in Maya.  Using image planes for my model reference, I was able to shape my character to look exactly like my design.  I started with a low poly version, and used this as my base for everything.  At this stage if was easiest to lay out the UV’s.    I’m not using ptex just yet as some applications I may be using are not ptex friendly.  I do love the idea of not having to fuss with UV’s but I’m a bit old school in that area at the moment.  I added a collar with a buckle, similar to the one my dog had.  After some tweaks and a smoothing pass, Mugs was ready to go into Mudbox for some sculpting.     In Mudbox, I tried my best to sculpt out muscle groups and shapes according to canine anatomy.  Since Mugs is heavily characterized, and I still want him to be cartoony, this was a delicate exercise.  At the end I felt I had accomplished a nice balance of believable muscles, but still feeling toon like.  I also painted some color as his base texture in Mudbox.    Exporting maps from […]
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